Ruth/Jews/Mark/Luke

>CQ> According to my copy of ye o' King James Version which our friend Richard is noteably always quoting from...

Wow! Thanks for the kindness of applying the word "friend" to me!
(I notice little things. :)

>CQ> Agreed, I knew Ruth was David's grandmother and not Jewish,...

Technically, there are no "Jews" in the Bible until after the death of Ruth's great-great-grandson Solomon, when the united kingdom was split into the northern kingdom of "Israel" and the southern kingdom of "Judah", from whence the term "Jew" is derived.

A Jew is a Judahite, that is, from or of Judah. The term "Jew" is not limited to physical descendents of Judah, but is applied also to other Israelites who were joined to the "kingdom" of Judah. The CITIZENS of Judah comprised children of both Judah and Benjamin, with a sprinkling of people from other tribes, including Levi...

>CQ> I think the new testament is also out of chronological order...

As a whole, the Bible is not in chronological order, but as noted before, in the prophetic order indicated in Isaiah's 66 chapters.

>CQ> ...as supposively the gospel of Mark was written much later than Luke...

The received (traditional) dates for the gospels are:
>1> Matthew = 37 A.D.
>2> Mark = 57-63 A.D.
>3> Luke = 63-68 A.D. (written BEFORE 1Timothy 5:18, see Lk.10:7 :)
>4> John = 85-90 A.D.

The opening words of LUKE: "Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed." (Lk.1:1-4)

Firstly, To my mind, that confirms that copies of Matthew and Mark's gospels had been "delivered" unto Luke before he wrote his gospel.

Secondly, Luke had a unique VIEWPOINT the others did not have, in that he was an eyewitness from the beginning, from the VERY FIRST! He was outside the temple when Zacharias (the father of John the Baptist) came out. He was in the temple when the prophet Simeon came in, followed by Mary with Jesus in her arms; and "behold"! he saw Simeon PLUCK Jesus out of her hands [and] lift him up, and BLESS GOD!

(Please see next message. Thanks. :)

John-Mark & Peter

From a message by a Curious Questioner--
>CQ> Subject: Re: Job is not a job

>CQ> and even there is debate whether all the chapters of Mark were written by Mark or even if the whole book was written by Mark.

Whether he wrote it, or someone penned it FOR him, it is evident that he is the immediate author of the whole book, including the last 12 verses that some people try to exclude from the book. Paul was the author of the epistle to the Romans, but: "I Tertius, who wrote this epistle, salute you in the Lord." (Rom.16:22) (The note by Tertius followed Paul's closing words, and after the closing words of Tertius, Paul, by his own hand, wrote the final closing.

Jeremiah was the author of the book by his name, but the writer was obviously Baruch: "Then Baruch answered them, He pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book." (Jer.36:18) And after the "original" book of Jeremiah was cut up and cast into the fire before the king: "Then took Jeremiah another roll, and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah; who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire: and there were added besides unto them many like words." (Jer.36:32)

>CQ> There is also debate whether Peter wrote the second book of Peter since the style is very different and being that Peter was not an educated man confirms it in a few people's minds.

It was "Silvanus" who "wrote" the FIRST book of Peter. Peter was ASSUMED to be "unlearned and ignorant" back in Acts 4:13p, but he had MANY years of learning, by the hand of the Lord upon him, and by reading Paul's scriptures also, before he himself wrote his final epistle, his last words before his "decease." Simon Peter, (with James and John, the sons of thunder,) were "eyewitnesses" of Christ's majesty, when they behold MOSES and ELIJAH alive and talking with THE LORD Jesus about his "decease" which was to be accomplished at Jerusalem. Peter was indeed "educated" in the "grace, and in the KNOWLEDGE of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." (Amen. :)

>CQ> I prefer to keep out of Richard's debates, quarrels and linguistic arguments...

(Oh yeah, uh huh, sure, tell be about it... :)

("There is nothing hidden that shall not be revealed." :)

Well, FRIEND, all kidding aside, Thanks for your patience in reading these things, in which are some things HARD to be understood. Grace, and mercy be with us all, in love for Jesus' sake. Amen. --Richard